Ronald Oranza. Photo from PSC/FILE

VIGAN, Ilocos Sur—The talent-laden Standard Insurance squad ruled the only team time trial (TTT) stage in the eight-leg revival of the Tour of Luzon on Friday and sent a loud message.

“We really expected to win this and we are very happy that we did,” Ronald Oranza said in Filipino after helping his crew clock one hour, 22 minutes and 31 seconds for the 68.5-kilometer journey from Paoay to this city famed for its careful preservation of Spanish colonial architecture.

Though Stage 2 didn’t count in the overall team race, winning by over two minutes over the Go for Gold and the 7-Eleven Roadbike teams certainly makes Standard Insurance as the team to beat in the chase for the cool million to the champion.

Standard pulled off the feat even after one of its riders, Dave Cayangao, had an equipment breakdown just 3 km into the race.

“We just helped each other out,” Oranza, who is still more than four minutes behind in the individual race, said.

The clocking of each of the 16 teams in the TTT was determined by the fourth rider of the squad who crossed the line in front of the Ilocos Sur provincial capitol.

Hong Kong’s CCN Team dropped out of the team race after its cyclists got decimated to just three during the opening stage on Thursday.

Local squads dominated the TTT, with MPT Drivehub Cycling Team, despite finishing just 1:47 behind, dropping to fourth because of an infraction.

Rounding out the top 10 were Excellent Noodles Cycling Team (2:25 behind), Exodus Army Cycling Team (2:36), Malaysia Pro Cycling (2:48), D-Reyna Orion Cement (3:21), Victoria Sports Cycling Team (3:23) and Bryton Racing Team (4:42).

The individual champion will earn P500,000 as Joo Dae-yeong of South Korea’s Gapyeong Cycling Team defends his overall lead over a mostly flat ride of 133.30 km going to San Juan in La Union, the nation’s surfing capital.